Many cruisers booking Carnival do so for price IMO......When we were at the airport waiting for the flight after the Breeze I noticed a young couple I'll guess late 20's that were on the ship with us and I asked him "you liked that cruise?" he said "yes I always cruise Carnival because we can cruise twice a year on Carnival versus once a year on Royal."

Carnival has some of the cheapest cruise rates out there and therefore you will find onboard all walks of life...

I don't care to be around rude, loud cruisers or cruisers that use curse words or want to start fist fights.....No thanks!

So if you sail Carnival your rude, loud and want to fight? RC is so upscale....please
Time for me to put this to rest, no point in going on.

I'm really not taking it personal at all , who know maybe when I take my Allure cruise I'll be blown away and I'll notice a real difference . I'm just surprised if it's that common why haven't I experienced any of that behavior as of yet and thank goodness for that because it would be a deal breaker for me. I probably jinked myself and my upcoming cruise will be the drunken booze cruise from hell.

I have to agree that the Oasis of the Seas and the Allure of the Seas definitely have a 'wow' factor, that's for sure!

We, too, have been on ships as small as 19,000 gross tons up to 220,000 gross tons and there is a huge difference between the two in the amenities that they offer. Obviously, larger ships can offer many things a smaller ship can't. But then again, smaller ships can offer a more intimate experience that the larger ships can't offer.

We've loved them all as they all have offered us something different. And that's the fun thing about cruising; there's something for everyone.

But everyone should definitely try the Oasis-class at least once just for the sheer novelty of it, if nothing else - they truly are amazing.

Then again, I think everyone should try everything at least twice to make sure they have an honest opinion of what they're truly like from their own personal experience.

There are pluses and minuses that can be tallied up on both sides. For "me" the pluses are more for Royal than Carnival. DW and I have cruised Carnival many times and we prefer the atmosphere on Royal. Drunks and poor behavior is not exclusive to just one cruiseline. Different cruiselines attract different types of people. This I believe is price driven. We don't mind paying a little more for the type of cruise we desire. There are people who are loyal to Royal and people who are loyal to Carnival and that's ok.

So if you sail Carnival your rude, loud and want to fight? RC is so upscale....please
Time for me to put this to rest, no point in going on.

I said you will find all walks of life on Carnival I did not say everyone on the ship wants to fight and is rude. I was on breeze I was not looking to pick fights, drunk, rude or loud...(well maybe alittle loud if I'm on the dance floor singing along to the dj's tunes....

If you compare Carnival's newest ship Breeze and Royal's newest ship Allure....yes Royal is more upscale IMO... I don't do the 3/4 night cruises so they may be party cruises (on all lines).

__________________CQ's Cruise Resume

Vision Of The Seas
Independence Of The Seas x2
Allure Of The Seas
Carnival Breeze
Oasis Of The Seas x3
Liberty Of The Seas x4
Freedom Of The Seas x3
Navigator Of The Seas x2
Explorer Of The Seas x2
Voyager Of The Seas
Enchantment Of The Seas
Rhapsody Of The Seas
Majesty Of The Seas
Monarch Of The Seas
Sovereign Of The Seas
Celebrity Mercury
Carnival Victory

I'm really not taking it personal at all , who know maybe when I take my Allure cruise I'll be blown away and I'll notice a real difference . I'm just surprised if it's that common why haven't I experienced any of that behavior as of yet and thank goodness for that because it would be a deal breaker for me. I probably jinked myself and my upcoming cruise will be the drunken booze cruise from hell.

Another major factor is timing!!! When we sailed on Carnival it was "Jersey week". The first week of November when a lot of schools in NJ are closed. There were lot's of families and kids. Not much problems with the drinking crowd but youngs kids running wild everywhere. When we sailed on Crown Princess it was Easter break. UGH!!! Lot's of high school kids and college kids. There were times when the drunks were very annouying. Lesson learned. Stay home for Easter which we can do know because school schedules no longer dictate when we vacation!!!

I have one rule if your joining me on a cruise do not bring your kids, I leave D/S & D/H home ...it's my vacation ...period!

Seriously neither of them will step foot on a ship and I'm ok with that, it's my mom get - away and now that D /S is older its time to cruise every year instead of every other year.

I hear you! We used to go on a cruise or major vacation like Disney World every two years. NOW the kids are in college or out so we did Oasis last year and next year we're doing two cruises!!! Life is good!!!

I guess I'm a little different when it comes to cruising with family. My "children" are 38, 31, 28 and 17 and my grandkids are 18, 15, 11 and 8. There are times when DW and I say, ok everybody let's go. Then there are times when DW and I go alone. We are all addicted to cruising.

Have not been around for awhile, but figure it is time to stick my two cents into the mix.
We prefer Royal...are Diamond Plus with them....we choose them because it fits our concept of what we want from a cruise.
We also sail Carnival when we have a must get away moment. Do not like the Fincanteri designed ships (going up, then going down or vice versa, when traversing the ship). Food is not quite up to RCI standards....remember, Carnival is the line that throught adding Mac and Cheese to the DInner menu was a step forward last year! But the Steakhouse on Carnival is spectacular (we always eat there 4 or 5 times during a one week cruise...that is how much we dislike the MDR....personal preference, not a food critic).
As for Princess....they fit into the mix as well, not crowded, but same ship designer, and they seem "vanilla" absolutely nothing wrong, but just nothing memorable.

I must say, I was pleasantly surprised with my last Princess cruise to Alaska...The food was better than I remembered and I loved the 24 hour Horizon court, fresh water pools, etc. I would for sure, cruise Princess anytime, but my all around favorite is Royal Caribbean... I did cruise Carnival once and it was fine, but just something missing for me and just seemed too crowded, especially in the buffet. The layout of both Princess and Royal Caribbean are wonderful, different stations, not just one line to wait in for everything...

We have cruised Celebrity, HAL, Princess, RCI, and Carnival. We are in our 60's and, of course, what we look for in a cruise has changed over the years. Unfortunately, when the recession hit, it hit me HARD personally. At the same time, the airlines just keep raising and raising their prices. We're in the Arizona desert, so the only port we can drive to comfortably would be in southern California. That means the Mexican Riviera.

So we went 4 Septembers in a row on the Carnival Splendor out of Long Beach because that was the only way we could afford a cruise for the last 4 years. We had a wonderful, relaxing time on each of those 4 cruises. We used our balcony a lot to read and relax, enjoyed music in the lobby before and after dinner, and didn't do much in the way of entertainment.

We are now "splurging"" and have a cruise booked on RCI Serenade of the Seas in January 2014 out of New Orleans, necessitating purchasing air fare. We have enjoyed our previous RCI cruises and I know we will enjoy this one too. As you can surmise, we are easy to please and we don't sweat the small stuff. It's all about enjoying spending time together and relaxing.

So, I guess our favorite cruise line is whichever one we are actually able to sail on at any given time! !

We have cruised Celebrity, HAL, Princess, RCI, and Carnival. We are in our 60's and, of course, what we look for in a cruise has changed over the years. Unfortunately, when the recession hit, it hit me HARD personally. At the same time, the airlines just keep raising and raising their prices. We're in the Arizona desert, so the only port we can drive to comfortably would be in southern California. That means the Mexican Riviera.

So we went 4 Septembers in a row on the Carnival Splendor out of Long Beach because that was the only way we could afford a cruise for the last 4 years. We had a wonderful, relaxing time on each of those 4 cruises. We used our balcony a lot to read and relax, enjoyed music in the lobby before and after dinner, and didn't do much in the way of entertainment.

We are now "splurging"" and have a cruise booked on RCI Serenade of the Seas in January 2014 out of New Orleans, necessitating purchasing air fare. We have enjoyed our previous RCI cruises and I know we will enjoy this one too. As you can surmise, we are easy to please and we don't sweat the small stuff. It's all about enjoying spending time together and relaxing.

So, I guess our favorite cruise line is whichever one we are actually able to sail on at any given time! !

My wife and I are also sailing out of New Orleans on the Serenade only in Febuary of 2015.We would be really interested to hear about your cruise.We are planning on staying in N.O for a couple of days before the cruise. Have a great time on your cruise

Many cruisers booking Carnival do so for price IMO......When we were at the airport waiting for the flight after the Breeze I noticed a young couple I'll guess late 20's that were on the ship with us and I asked him "you liked that cruise?" he said "yes I always cruise Carnival because we can cruise twice a year on Carnival versus once a year on Royal."

!

That may be true, But I would rather cruise once on Royal than twice on Carnival.

We have cruised Celebrity, HAL, Princess, RCI, and Carnival. We are in our 60's and, of course, what we look for in a cruise has changed over the years. Unfortunately, when the recession hit, it hit me HARD personally. At the same time, the airlines just keep raising and raising their prices. We're in the Arizona desert, so the only port we can drive to comfortably would be in southern California. That means the Mexican Riviera.

So we went 4 Septembers in a row on the Carnival Splendor out of Long Beach because that was the only way we could afford a cruise for the last 4 years. We had a wonderful, relaxing time on each of those 4 cruises. We used our balcony a lot to read and relax, enjoyed music in the lobby before and after dinner, and didn't do much in the way of entertainment.

We are now "splurging"" and have a cruise booked on RCI Serenade of the Seas in January 2014 out of New Orleans, necessitating purchasing air fare. We have enjoyed our previous RCI cruises and I know we will enjoy this one too. As you can surmise, we are easy to please and we don't sweat the small stuff. It's all about enjoying spending time together and relaxing.

So, I guess our favorite cruise line is whichever one we are actually able to sail on at any given time! !

Very well stated!! Could not agree with you more on everything you said as we're the same way. We have the same sentiment as you do - any cruise is what you make it. If you want a great time, you'll have one - just don't sweat the small stuff. We've been on 45 cruises on 11 different cruise lines and we can honestly say we've never had a bad cruise. Yes, some have been better than others, but we're easy to please and have never had any major complaints.

As for whether any cruise line is better than any other cruise line, it's all a matter of choice. As my favorite saying goes, "What one person loves, another will hate." Everyone is different and what they like is different. So just because one person loves or hates a particular cruise line, does not necessarily mean your experience will be the same.

Always bothers me when I hear people say something like, "Oh, I would never cruise on Carnival!" When I ask them why, I always hear the same thing, "So & so said it was......." How can they know whether or not they like it because of what someone else says? Those people may miss out on a fantastic experience, but they'll never know because they've already formulated an opinion based on what others have to say.

I fell sorry for people like that because their comfort zone is so closed off, they'll never be able to expand their horizons and experience this wonderful world for all it's worth.

If you don't experience a few bad things, you really can't appreciate the great things as much and you begin to take them for granted. So don't be afraid of trying new things - it may surprise you.

Manuel,I feel the same as you, may be I won't cruise as often, but when I do, they are usually just wonderful. I know exactly what to expect from Royal Caribbean, but was so surprised with Allure, just an outstanding cruise experience, even though I have been to all the ports before, there is always something different to do or nothing...Since it is difficult to get some choice time away from work, I have to make the best of the cruises I do get to go on.

That may be true, But I would rather cruise once on Royal than twice on Carnival.

TM

Me Too!!!!

__________________CQ's Cruise Resume

Vision Of The Seas
Independence Of The Seas x2
Allure Of The Seas
Carnival Breeze
Oasis Of The Seas x3
Liberty Of The Seas x4
Freedom Of The Seas x3
Navigator Of The Seas x2
Explorer Of The Seas x2
Voyager Of The Seas
Enchantment Of The Seas
Rhapsody Of The Seas
Majesty Of The Seas
Monarch Of The Seas
Sovereign Of The Seas
Celebrity Mercury
Carnival Victory

Allure in 2014 for me.... Until then Explorer a few more times (no air needed ) After Allure it's Quantum time!!

__________________CQ's Cruise Resume

Vision Of The Seas
Independence Of The Seas x2
Allure Of The Seas
Carnival Breeze
Oasis Of The Seas x3
Liberty Of The Seas x4
Freedom Of The Seas x3
Navigator Of The Seas x2
Explorer Of The Seas x2
Voyager Of The Seas
Enchantment Of The Seas
Rhapsody Of The Seas
Majesty Of The Seas
Monarch Of The Seas
Sovereign Of The Seas
Celebrity Mercury
Carnival Victory

I will have to join you on the Allure so that I can say that I have cruise with ( The Cruisequeen ).

TM

It would be a pleasure to meet and cruise with the TM's!!
Allure here we come!!!

__________________CQ's Cruise Resume

Vision Of The Seas
Independence Of The Seas x2
Allure Of The Seas
Carnival Breeze
Oasis Of The Seas x3
Liberty Of The Seas x4
Freedom Of The Seas x3
Navigator Of The Seas x2
Explorer Of The Seas x2
Voyager Of The Seas
Enchantment Of The Seas
Rhapsody Of The Seas
Majesty Of The Seas
Monarch Of The Seas
Sovereign Of The Seas
Celebrity Mercury
Carnival Victory

My brother has sailed on 2 Carnival cruises, and then joined us on his first Royal Caribbean cruise.

His feedback - no comparison.

His take was that Carnival ships were "older feeling onboard" for cabins and other locations, the maintenance was clearly overdue on railings and decks, and that the Royal Caribbean ships were "like new in comparison".